With the 40-30 victory over Nebraska still on the scoreboard, K-State fans struggled with a goalpost, finally conquering it and carrying it off to Aggieville as guest of honor on the roof of Rusty's Last Chance Restaurant and Saloon.Chris Lee/The Capital-JournalWildcats give spectators a bit of everything

MANHATTAN -- The Kansas State Wildcats were in a benevolent mood Saturday at KSU Stadium.

They gave Nebraska numerous opportunities. They gave a regional ABC television audience plenty -- plenty! -- of excitement. They may even have given a few of their supporters ulcers.

But ultimately the No. 2-ranked Cats gave those same supporters what was coveted most -- a victory against Nebraska for the first time in 30 years.

Trailing the Cornhuskers 30-27 midway through the final quarter, quarterback Michael Bishop engineered K-State on an eight-play, 80-yard drive that propelled his team to a 40-30 victory and kept alive its national championship hopes.

"I thought I'd never see this in my lifetime," 31-year-old Manhattan native Toby Mills said just moments after a horde of his fellow Wildcat fans stormed Wagner Field.

"I really thought that destiny was on our side," said Steve Kimball, also of Manhattan. "I just told my wife, I think this is the best game I've seen here."

Were it not for the late K-State rally, however, Kimball and the rest of the Wildcat rooters may not have felt that way. The Wildcats trailed 17-14 at halftime, in large part because they committed three turnovers.

"I was just really disgusted in the first half," said Mary Eves, of Wichita. "I thought they played so poorly and below what they were capable of doing."

But then came a second half that saw K-State overcome two more turnovers, the adversity of trailing in a game for the first time all season and -- perhaps most importantly -- the Nebraska mystique that dated to Nov. 9, 1968.

"They made a great comeback," Eves said, her look of disgust suddenly turning to a wide grin. "They did K-State proud!"

Everyone agreed.

"I've been coming to games here for 27 years," said John Sullivan, of Manhattan, "and it's just a fantastic win."

In fact, Sullivan said Saturday's game was almost his greatest experience as a K-Stater. But not quite.

That came on Parents Day in 1989, when he and his wife, Connie, were named Kansas State Parents of the Year. The Sullivans' daughter, Dannette, wrote an essay nominating them for that distinction, Sullivan said.

So, John, is this a close second?

"Yeah, it is," he said.

After the game, fans tore down a goalpost and paraded it to the Aggieville entertainment district, where they parked it on the roof of Rusty's Last Chance Restaurant and Saloon.